LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

THE HARTFORD COURANT

Accountability

Missing In U.S.

Poor Mr. Zheng Xiaoyu [editorial, July 17, "Execution Of Zheng Xiaoyu"], former head of China's food and drug safety agency, who was executed after several deaths linked to fake medicines and products sold under his watch. Although we Westerners might cringe at the severity of the punishment, some, like myself, admire the Chinese for demonstrating publicly that there will be some accountability for the actions of public servants. All of which made me wonder:

Who was held accountable for not protecting rescuers from the asbestos-filled air at Ground Zero and the resultant illnesses it caused?

Who was held accountable for all the bad intelligence that got us into the Iraq war?

Who was held accountable for the lack of planning that has compromised the prosecution of that war effort and the lives of our troops?

Who was held accountable for the disappearance of one ton of U.S. dollars from the vaults in Iraq?

Who was held accountable for the ineffective response to Katrina?

Who was held accountable or the ineffective follow-up to the response to Katrina?

And the list goes on. Is it any wonder that people lose confidence in government?

David Mann

Bloomfield

Petraeus Report's Fate Predetermined

Besides President George W. Bush (who welcomes the delay for obvious reasons), why are many others waiting for Gen. David Petraeus' Iraq war assessment report of Sept. 15, 2007, when we already know what its fate will be -- like that of the Iraq Study Group Report of Dec. 6, 2006?

In writing his document, the general will be in the untenable position of having to address (and please) a number of audiences. Among them will be his commander in chief, the secretaries of Defense and State, subordinate officers, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, members of Congress, families of the 3,600 killed in the war so far, the military rank and file and the American citizen-taxpayers who are shelling out $9 billion a month for the war's continued prosecution.

But as any good writer knows, when he or she tries to be all things to all people, the result is mush. Moreover, in the case of Gen. Petraeus, touted for his integrity as well as his expertise in counterinsurgency, can he -- if push comes to shove -- stave off the inevitable criticisms of weakness to be remembered as the four-star commander who had the guts to say unequivocally, "It isn't working; we must withdraw"?

Burton Albert

Avon

Trained To Kill,

Then Punished For It

Because I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby is a free man thanks to his friend, I would like my friends, the U.S. military troops facing charges and court-martial for alleged actions in Iraq, to be free. Stop putting them on trial when in basic training they are trained that they must kill or be killed. War is hell and living in a war zone is hell. Will the president commute any of their sentences?

Well, somebody has to be the fall guy.

Mary Knapp

Enfield

The writer is a U.S. Air Force veteran.

Lieberman Doesn't

Support Troops

I thank Rick Green for exposing Sen. Joe Lieberman as a hypocrite [column, July 17, "Lieberman Supports Troops -- Or Does He?"].

In March, Joe said we must do more for the troops. In July, he opposed the bipartisan Webb-Hagel amendment that would have required more time at home for our troops between combat deployments.

Sens. Jim Webb, D-Va., and Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., are both Vietnam combat veterans who, combined, have earned many military decorations and honors including a Navy Cross, a Silver Star, two Bronze Stars and four Purple Hearts. Their amendment reflected the recommendation in May by military health care experts that our troops needed more time at home between combat assignments. The Military Officers Association of America (368,000 members) supported the amendment as important for our troops' psychological welfare.

As a Vietnam veteran, I am appalled that Sen. Lieberman had a chance to really support our troops and failed to do so. Once again, Joe proved that his flag lapel pin is basically just a phony fashion statement.

Val E. Dumais

Plainville

Wrong Time

To Lose McCain

The Courant was right in its July 13 editorial ["'Straight Talk Express' Stalled?"] to urge Sen. John McCain to remain in the race.

In 2000, I was honored to serve as the Connecticut state director for Sen. McCain's presidential campaign. Since then I have left the Republican Party, Sen. McCain has moved closer to the conservative wing of the Republican Party and the "Straight Talk Express" has encountered some engine trouble. Politics can get complicated. In spite of these complications, there is no candidate running for president who has the experience, courage, moral clarity and, most of all, leadership qualities of Sen. McCain.

I know that his dramatic story of being held prisoner for more than five years by the North Vietnamese, sadly, wears thin with some people. It should not. The memories do not fade for him or any other veteran. Neither should our appreciation for their sacrifice. The battles John McCain incurred in prison, the death, torture, inhumanity, lawless behavior and, most of all, the realization that we are truly our brother's keeper are experiences and values we need so desperately in our next president.

Whether we like it or not, our world is now consumed by a military ethos. The ballot is not winning the day. It is fear and the bullet. You cannot negotiate with people who consider public beheadings of innocent civilians a form of public policy. We are not in a battle with Muslims. We are in a battle against evil.

John McCain will not sugar-coat the sacrifices and challenges we will face in order to win the battles ahead. A McCain presidency will give less and ask for more from all of us. John McCain has given his entire life. The question is, are we ready to join him?

Ben Davol

Farmington

Islam Isn't Defined

By Extremists

Jennifer Warner Cooper must be applauded for shunning bigotry and examining Islam [Other Opinion, July 18, "A Chance To See Beyond The Veil Of Bias"].

The mud flung at the Islamic faith and its one billion followers in recent years is unbelievable to most Muslims. People with the intellect and curiosity of Ms. Cooper are the first line of defense for Muslims who work to wipe off that mud.

When you grow up Muslim, Islam is not complicated. There are only five tenets to Islam: faith, prayer, charity, fasting and pilgrimage. There are some things we don't eat, drink or wear, and there are some activities we avoid. Muslim families, like non-Muslim families, want good health, security, equal opportunity and the comfort of strong ties with family and community. There are no chapters in our Sunday school books on terror, bomb-making, smiting the infidels or cruelty to women. Sadly, sociopathic extremists have convinced non-Muslims and even some Muslims that these chapters exist.

Muslims cannot let extremists define them. It's an uphill battle because extremists get far more air time than Muslims. But it's a battle Muslims must win. I want to thank Muslims who speak for Islam.

And I thank Ms. Cooper for listening.

Ajaz Fiazuddin

East Hampton

Less Paper, More

Chestnut Trees

At Northeast Utilities, we applaud The Courant's coverage of the effort to restore the American chestnut tree [Life section, July 11, "Blight Fight"]. American chestnut trees are of special historical significance for electric utilities because they were utilized in the early days of the industry as poles to hold power lines.

Since September 2006, our registered shareholders, about 20,000 in Connecticut, have had a partnership producing benefits for both the company and the American Chestnut Foundation. For every shareholder who signs up for electronic access to our annual report and annual meeting proxy, we are making a $5 donation to the foundation. In May, we donated more than $8,000 and we expect to donate several thousand dollars more next May because of hundreds of additional shareholders who have registered for electronic access this summer.

We benefit by saving $5 annually in printing and mailing costs for each shareholder. This spring, we avoided distributing more than one ton of paper through this program.

We believe we are the only utility in the country to form this partnership with the American Chestnut Foundation, and 100 percent of our donations support planting chestnut trees in Connecticut.

We encourage other companies to follow our lead. By reducing our paper consumption, we can save on our costs, reduce energy demand resulting from the printing process and help an old friend of the utility return to its historical place in the American landscape.

Jeffrey Kotkin

Vice President

Investor Relations

Northeast Utilities Service Co.

Berlin

Don't Blame

DOT Employee

Let's imagine a mayor who drastically eliminates positions in the local police department. When crime goes up, whose fault is it, the few cops still on the job or the mayor? Based on the logic of The Courant in its July 18 editorial on the state Department of Transportation ["I-84 Hearing Sheds Light"], blame lands on the public servants, not the bone-headed politician.

The Courant opines it's "mind-boggling" that the DOT engineer assigned to the I-84 project did not physically monitor the work on the project. After former Gov. John Rowland and his budget director Marc Ryan's disastrous tenure of hiring freezes, layoffs and early retirements, DOT was so short-staffed that this engineer was assigned two to three times the recommended workload. Therefore, the engineer was forced to perform paper inspections, not physical ones.

It is mind-bogglingly stupid to fault this employee for failing to possess superhuman powers; that is, the ability to be on three worksites at once or use X-ray vision to look underground at work improperly done and inspected by outside consultants and contractors when he was not on site.

The editorial also neglects to mention that the employee requested extra hours to perform more thorough inspections. Under Marc Ryan's Office of Policy and Management rules (rules that remain in effect today), he was denied.

The fault for this fiasco lies with Rowland and his enablers -- who pressed for outsourcing coupled with cuts in vital services, oversight and infrastructure -- and with the negligent consultants and contractors who performed such shoddy work.

Rick Melita

Political Director

CSEA-SEIU Local 2001

Hartford

CSEA represents engineering, scientific and technical employees at the Connecticut Department of Transportation and other state agencies.

When are the so-called free speech advocates going to realize that free speech only works when used with responsibility?

Certainly Avery Donninger, a student at Lewis S. Mills High School in Burlington, doesn't get it. She called school officials "douchbags" because an event got canceled and posted her rant on a blog site where anyone could read it. This was far worse than, say, scribbling on the bathroom walls.

Now Avery is suing, with her mother's blessing, saying that her free speech rights were violated when school administrators removed her as class secretary. She called officials a derogatory name on the Internet. If anyone should be suing, it should be the officials suing her for libel. They must be made of better stock.

Having free speech does not entitle one to yell "fire" in a crowded mall. It also does not entitle you to call someone a derogatory name and not expect consequences.

Respect is the key, and it's about time parents taught their children about real respect.

Mark Norman

Enfield

I am in support of what this mother and daughter have fought for. But I also see this as a bigger problem.

School officials failed to see this as a teaching opportunity. Students were upset and frustrated over JamFest being canceled. This was a perfect opportunity for officials to work with these students and help them learn to problem-solve and speak about their frustrations. Instead, they pulled out the authority power card and made these students even more angry. Why not acknowledge their frustration and help them work through this? Why not listen to them and come up with alternatives.

Students today are under so much pressure to succeed academically and competitively, and to be accepted by their peers. Many of these children are dealing with so many emotions and use their writing to express how they feel. They should be encouraged to vent frustration and to reach out to work out their problems.

Children spend a lot of time at school. The education system needs to take notice that it must do more about educating students on how to deal with their emotions and encouraging them to speak out. We all know the consequences of a student's anger and frustrations that goes unnoticed or ignored. Look at Virginia Tech or Columbine. I wonder how many school officials took the time to listen to those kids. I wonder how many missed opportunities occurred during their school years. Such events happen for a reason and we should learn from them. What have we learned from this incident?